MANGROVE GENETICS .3. PIGMENT FINGERPRINTS OF CHLOROPHYLL-DEFICIENT MUTANTS

The homozygous albino offspring from ii different red mangrove trees (Rhizophora mangle) heterozygous for albinism were pigment fingerprinted by HPLC/diode-array spectroscopy. The majority of albino genotypes were deficient in suites of chlorophylls, xanthophylls, and carotenes. A total of five different chemical phenotypes was distinguished. In red mangroves, genetic load due to homozygosity for chlorophyll deficiency follows Muller's mutation load model; i.e., small load contributions are made by many different loci. The average load contribution is 1.3 x 10(-4) homozygous albino offspring per locus.